Abstract

Hepatocellular carcinoma is a highly heterogeneous disease for different reasons. First, there are multiple and highly variable etiological factors including viruses with a DNA (HBV) or RNA (HCV) genome, chemicals (alcohol and aflatoxins), and inborn and acquired metabolic diseases. Second, these cancers might originate either from mature hepatocytes or from progenitor cells. Third, like other cancers, HCC undergoes a dynamic process changing morphology and molecular features as it advances. Therefore, molecular mechanisms of hepatocellular carcinogenesis may vary depending on different factors and this is probably why a large set of mechanisms have been associated with these tumors. Among many different mechanisms described, we review here those that we believe are the most prominent ones including loss of cell cycle control, escape from senescence control, resistance to cell death, phenotypic plasticity, motility, invasion, and metastasis.